After media obligations and press opportunities, Aldean was able to join his Broken Bow Records family at the afterparty. His first Entertainer of the Year award was a longtime coming, with the "Lights Come On" singer all but admitting he'd given up hope as he accepted. So he was ready to let loose at the BBR Party, and he says he stuck around there for a long while.

“And then, I’d lost a little money at the blackjack table earlier in the weekend," Aldean shares with Taste of Country Nights' Sam Alex, "so I went that night and tried to go late in the night and get some of that back. And I did. I got some of it back."

Thomas Rhett and Brett Eldredge joined Aldean in at a private table at the Mandalay Bay Casino, his favorite place to play in Vegas.

“Everyone was winning that night so it was one of those fun nights to play," he says.

Throughout the weekend Darius Rucker and Charles Kelley joined him to play blackjack. Aldean has plenty of friends in the industry, so there are many who appreciate how hard he worked for his first Entertainer of the Year award.

On Friday, the singer announced tour dates for his Six String Circus Tour. The trek begins on May 19 in Rogers, Ark., and includes dates at stadiums and amphitheaters through October 1. A Thousand Horses and Rhett will open the tour, while Kid Rock will join him for select shows.